Though not recognized as being solar-powered, carbon-sequestration devices, trees perform this essential task every day of their lives. Rather than building expensive, human-engineered “solutions,” we must take better advantage (and care) of what the good lord has already given us. Wishing you all happy holidays and a greener 2019! —Suzanne Sundburg

Forests are the most powerful and efficient carbon-capture system on the planet

Recent scientific research confirms that forests and other “natural climate solutions” are absolutely essential in mitigating climate change, thanks to their carbon sequestering and storage capabilities. In fact, natural climate solutions can help us achieve 37 percent of our climate target, even though they currently receive only 2.5 percent of public climate financing.

However we don’t have to wait for high tech sequestration. We can increase carbon sequestration now by working with some experts. They’re called trees, and they have almost 350 million years’ experience in sequestering carbon. Trees, like other green plants, use photosynthesis to convert carbon dioxide (CO2) into sugar, cellulose and other carbon-containing carbohydrates that they use for food and growth. Trees are unique in their ability to lock up large amounts of carbon in their wood, and continue to add carbon as they grow.[Alternately, cutting down trees releases CO2.]

If both New York and Alabama can agree on trees’ value in carbon sequestration, then Arlington County should be able to grasp this important concept. If you want to fight climate change, you need to preserve your mature tree canopy and improve the long-term survival of the new trees being planted. Below are a couple of after-and-before pictures from the Lubber Run community center site:

ATAG member Angela Dickey thanks Board member John Vihstadt for his work on complex issues including climate change and storm water runoff.

ATAG’s Angela Dickey thanks John Vihstadt

Recap of 11/17 County Board Meeting;

see you at 12/15 CB meeting!

Stand up for green space at 12/15 county board meeting as

Arlington deals with development, Amazon, etc!

At the Nov. 15th County Board meeting, in a meeting room packed with residents galvanized by the prospect of Amazon coming to Arlington, Board members heard citizens concerned about: impacts of HQ2; loss of trees in parks; need for an open POPS process and improved scheduling of field use; lack of transparency; and other challenges.

Video at link below, along with a link to County page on Amazon.

Among Public Comments raised: Friends of Upton Hill, with ATAG standing in support, expressed alarm at non-transparent decisions affecting tree loss and cost increases at this NoVa Park; a call for an “inclusive” POPS process that includes improved accuracy of field use scheduling; and a citizen saying he and his wife had to leave Arlington because they could not afford a studio in Crystal City (pre-HQ2).

Regarding residents accessing confidentiality agreements regarding HQ2, several Board members stated most negotiating was done “at the State level.” County attorney agreed they were not privy to a lot of pertinent information; one Member cited a “firewall” between what the State and County knew.

Following discussion of the major delay in construction of a Courthouse Plaza amenity, the one independent Member posited the site plan for the project was not being taken “seriously” and urged greater attention to transparency and implementation of plans. Mr. Vihstadt applauded the Manager appointing an Open Data Advisory Committee; at the same time, he noted Arlington meets just 9 of the 31 metrics the Sunlight Foundation set in its Open Data Policy Guidelines. Manager indicated that meeting such metrics is “not the only thing” staff have to spend time and energy on, and referred to “privacy aspects.” Manager is invited to give the Board an update on the Open Data initiative at the Board meeting on December 15.

Speaking of the CB meeting on Saturday, Dec.15, (Public Comment at 8:30 am), at 2100 Clarendon Blvd, Rm 307, we hope some of you are free to speak on protecting our green infrastructure and support other speakers. Join us, too, after CB meeting– we will meet at nearby at Corner Bakery (2111 Wilson Blvd) to review priority steps to protect our environment–for us, and generations to come. Planning for big changes makes attending CB meetings and discussing next steps especially timely.

[David] Hondula [Arizona State University professor] attributes about half of this to climate change and the rest to the built environment. Those parking lots and wide roads, strip malls and air conditioners all keep the city hotter, what’s called the urban heat island effect, especially overnight.

But most of all, Hondula says, the city needs a lot more trees.

It’s a pressing problem in low-income and largely Hispanic neighborhoods that tend to be the hottest.

Although the County is interpreting and publicizing the Assessment as showing that our urban forest has grown one percent since 2011 in the face of continuing population growth and development, this conclusion is not justified by the Assessment itself. For one thing, one percent is within the Assessment’s margin of error. For another, the 2017 and 2011 studies used different methodologies, so precise comparisons are not warranted.

The real headline is that many neighborhoods have suffered significant tree losses since the last report in 2011. See the map at page 10 of the 2017 Assessment:

Tree canopy losses

This is the message that matches what we are seeing in our neighborhoods as more and more trees are taken down.

Friends of Aurora Highlands Parks identify a pattern of County errors that consistently overestimated demand for recreational fields and narrowed supply, despite overwhelming resident feedback placing much higher priorities on other needs and park uses like trails and natural and open parkland.

“Please Save Me” tree destroyed (March 5, 2018)

On about March 1 a builder destroyed the beautiful magnolia tree noted below (December 15, 2017) that had worn a sign asking that it be spared. Also destroyed was another wonderful tree in the back yard. The entire home has now been bulldozed.

View from Williamsburg Blvd after trees destroyed

“Please Save Me” magnolia tree destroyed

View of front yard after trees destroyed.

A remembrance of the lost magnolia tree:

Hello,

In regards to the magnolia tree at 6255 Williamsburg Blvd:

That was my childhood home from 1976 (moved with my mom when I was 3 into her mother’s house) through 1996 or so when I moved out on my own. That old magnolia was there through my childhood and along with those border hedges all the way around served as sort of a welcome flag every time we returned home. I can’t count how many times I swung on the lower branch going by and how many hours I spent throwing those cones the tree dropped everywhere when I was young. That tree stood right where you drove in to welcome you back in every season, recall it full and vibrant in the summer and snow covered and beautiful in the winter. It was there before me and it stood long after I left, had its own personality and life about it and although I had already seen on Google Earth from above that the house had been demolished it hit me especially hard to see that the old living magnolia was now gone forever. Thank you for your efforts to save it but progress yields to nothing I suppose, not even something alive and beautiful. I believe the absence of that old house and unique yard will forever change the landscape of that once quaint little circle where once upon a time Santa handed out presents on the island between Sharp Park and People’s Drug. Time moves on relentlessly but I’m still here for a bit longer to remember it all as it once was.

ATAG sent a letter to the responsible party requesting the tree be saved:

December 15, 2017

Sunil Saxena

20023 Belmont Station Drive

Ashburn, VA 20147-000

Dear Mr. Saxena,

On behalf of the Arlington Tree Action Group, a group of residents promoting the economic, health and other benefits of trees, we are writing to draw attention to trees we hope your company will save while developing the lot at 6255 Williamsburg Boulevard.

As you know, trees have tangible economic, health, and environmental benefits, as underscored again in recent research by Arlington County:

In particular, please work to save the magnificent magnolia in the front corner of the property, on which an anonymous citizen posted a poignant sign: “Please Save Me.” By doing just that, and saving the small tree in the back corner, your company can be seen as:

–responsive to residents;

–understanding of the myriad benefits of mature trees;

–a trendsetter in building a community that seeks a future that is sustainable.